Lee dies HELP

[dudits]

hello all,
i have been reloading for awhile now. but i am now looking to get into .223 for a AR.
i use a leepro 1000 press. "i know it aint the best but it works great for me so far"
anyways i am wondering which die set yall think i need?
was lookin at midway and they offer a few different ones for .223
i have not loaded rifle for a long time and am not looking forward to all that comes with it "trimming cases"
and am also wondering what tools yall think are best/worst and for the most part fast.

p.s. i am kinda new around here "been lurking for awhile" and would use the search but i know i would get distracted and have about 30 tabs with different stuff and be up all night reading.

any help is much appreciated

[500MAG]

Can't load 223 on lee pro 1000. Sorry, I guess you can. Got rid of mine before I got to try 223 on it.

[john hayslip]

you don't need to trim to length unless the cases are already too long you are going to roll crimp - few j-words I've seen have a cannelure to crimp into. The lee crimping die uses a collet and you don't need to trim if you feel the need to crimp.. I just got the rest of the things I need to do my 1000 as a dedicated 223 loader. I am not a fan of Lee primer feeders so I'm going to deprime and prime off the machine and do sizing(without the decapping rod - doing it this way will probably give you enough neck tension so that crimping isn't required), powder - you'll probably need the Lee double disc kit to get the correct amount of powder and Lee rifle charging die to use the Lee powder throwers and that's what I'm going to do-- and then finally bullet seating. At least that's the plan at the present time. Of course if I find a better way I'll try it. If you're going to use the Lee powder thrower with fine grained powder and it leaks above the disc contact me and I'll send you a copy of an article which should enable you to deal with the problem without too much problem.

[MtGun44]

Trimming the .223 is absolutely critical. I have seen three .223 rifles destroyed by extreme overpressure,
each due to excessively long (untrimmed) cases. Do NOT skip the trimming (or measuring) step!

That said, trimming is best done with a trimmer, not with a case trim die and a file. Lee makes several
different inexpensive trimmers if you don't already have a Lyman or Forster gen purpose trimmer.

Do NOT fail to at least measure your .223 cases (or any bottleneck rifle cartridge, esp) for safety's sake.

I have a Forster trimmer, a Lyman trimmer and a number of the simple little Lee hand trimmers. A lot
depends on how many you are going to do. I use the Forster or Lyman for most jobs but when I am loading
2000 rds of .223, I borrow a friend's Dillon power trimmer. The Lee zip trimmer looks good, but have never
tried it myself. The simple little Lee hand trimmers work just fine, but will tire you out if
you are doing a whole bunch of brass.

Bill

[engineer401]

The Little Crow case trimmer installs into your power drill. It seems pretty slick. I don't know anyone who has one. http://www.littlecrowgunworks.com/wft.html

[EDG]

If you have been reloading pistol cartridges you have a set of habits both physical and mental that are not going to mesh with reloading rifle rounds if you start off thinking "how fast' can I load these.

Rifle cases need the inside of the necks lubed and if you use an oil you have to clean it out before charging.
Rifle cases need attention to trim length after sizing but before charging.

Sure there are ways to design a process to avoid some of these requirements but you need to learn a little more before going down that road.

[FLHTC]

Trimming the .223 is absolutely critical. I have seen three .223 rifles destroyed by extreme overpressure,
each due to excessively long (untrimmed) cases. Do NOT skip the trimming (or measuring) step!

That said, trimming is best done with a trimmer, not with a case trim die and a file. Lee makes several
different inexpensive trimmers if you don't already have a Lyman or Forster gen purpose trimmer.

Do NOT fail to at least measure your .223 cases (or any bottleneck rifle cartridge, esp) for safety's sake.

I have a Forster trimmer, a Lyman trimmer and a number of the simple little Lee hand trimmers. A lot
depends on how many you are going to do. I use the Forster or Lyman for most jobs but when I am loading
2000 rds of .223, I borrow a friend's Dillon power trimmer. The Lee zip trimmer looks good, but have never
tried it myself. The simple little Lee hand trimmers work just fine, but will tire you out if
you are doing a whole bunch of brass.

Bill

Ditto!!!! As the bolt handle cams over, the loaded round is pressed forward into the chamber. If the case is too long, the case mouth will be crushed into the bullet as the round goes forward and by doing so, will restrict the exit of the bullet from the case and drive the pressure up substantially. There's no way to predict if you'll get flattened primer or the gun exploding. This possibility is real and it DOES happen. I know you mention an AR but trimming will only help and never hurt. The case volume changes as the case stretches and as a result, pressure fluctuation occurs and accuracy suffers.

[dudits]

well i will be doing them by the thousands, so i def need a fast trimmer. will look into dillons.

[Gunslinger1911]

Small base dies for loading for an AR - don't ask how I learned this !!

[P.K.]

well i will be doing them by the thousands, so i def need a fast trimmer. will look into dillons.

The Little Crow trimmer mentioned earlier will do the trick with just a drill.

[jmort]

"i use a leepro 1000 press. "i know it aint the best but it works great for me so far""

Nothing wrong with your press. Need to tinkler with it, but for many userers it works just fine. Sad that some dumba$$es here have made people feel compelled to apologize for the equipment they have/use. Good for you and your progress. Congratulations.

[r1kk1]

Need to tinkler with it,

Correct me if I'm wrong. Tinkering means die adjustments, right? It doesn't mean getting a press to load ammo as advertised, correct? I don't own a Pro 1000. I would think after 30 years or more in production the press has all the kinks worked out by now.

Take care,

r1kk1

[StratsMan]

well i will be doing them by the thousands, so i def need a fast trimmer. will look into dillons.

Or, pay someone else to process your brass... I know, it's counter-intuitive to most folks on this forum... but if you're truly going to load thousands of rounds of 223 (not unreasonable), then you can save a lot of time by having someone else process your brass...

There is a such a processor near me... River Valley Ordnance Works (www.rvow.com) I believe their current price is $40/thou to size, trim, swage and clean your brass... you pay the freight both ways, of course... see how much you can get in a Large Flat Rate Box... They're processing every day...

[jmort]

"Correct me if I'm wrong. Tinkering means die adjustments, right?"

No tinkering with the machine. It will work well if you work with it. Many happy users out there. The first link should be especially useful.

http://randomthoughtsandguns.blogspot.com/2012/04/reloading-review-lee-pro1000-review.html
http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=109423
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baDOfa1nYyU
http://forums.handloads.com/archive/forum_posts.asp?TID=13342
http://www.xdtalk.com/forums/ammo-can/56881-lee-pro-1000-set-up-tutorial-sticky-6.html
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?109795-Anyone-use-Lee-Pro-1000-Progressive-Press

[r1kk1]

"Correct me if I'm wrong. Tinkering means die adjustments, right?"

No tinkering with the machine. It will work well if you work with it.

No. Not the machine for me.
Thanks for answering my post.

r1kk1

[jmort]

If you have the $$$ and want a progressive it's Dillion or Hornady LNL. If you are short on $$$ and are mechanically inclined, a Lee Precision progressive could be a reasonable option. For me, the Lee Precision Classic Turret is the best of all worlds.

[dudits]

mine works great, i have run about .
10k .45
10k 9mm
4k .380
and a few hundred .45colts
ya just gotta know it's quirks and pay attention.
but i know alot of people favor dillons. i am sure i will have one someday
but will wait till i have my toy collection a little larger "like 30 or so more"
i have checked out a few other forums and gotta say this place is my new home.
some of the others have a different feel from the members.
and the information on here is endless....

i think i need the pace setter dies after reading on lee's site.
definatley know i need a fast trimmer gonna look into the little crow!

stratsman, i am definatley gonna look into processing for me. that would be very helpfull on occasions!

my fiance has become a gun nut and loves to squeeze that trigger. matter fact next build is a PINK ar for her.
to match her pink 380 and 9.

[dudits]

oops also wanted to mention that i load my fiance's 30's for her m1 carbine that she bought
for 200$ in great condition all by herself. "some guys are suckers for a pretty girl, i was pretty proud"
just a PITA to find brass for her for it